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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wax — to grow
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. shower — rain
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. game — a match
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. game — wild animals
  19. shower — to wash
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. cell — in biology
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. wax — for sculpting

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com